Homeschool/Preschool Week #8 More Halloween and ABCs

Super excited!

We hit our

Two Month Mark

Today!

That's right! We have completed a full 8 weeks of our little preschool! I couldn't be more proud of Little E...or myself. We have really worked hard to get here and it is paying off!

If you'll remember back over in Week #1 of Preschool , we were both pretty lost and trying to find our way, anyway to make this work! Wow, we've came a long way baby!

I have found so many wonderful Momma's and resources out there, and I know I keep mentioning them but, I seriously couldn't have gotten this far without all the help!

A couple of my favorites for awesome resources are:

FastSEOGuru~ For alphabet printable worksheets

Planning Playtime~ TONS of worksheets, activities and games

This Week....

We are still working on the letter T.

Here is our:

Letter T tracing worksheet

I've had her do a few worksheets. Mostly, tracing and learning to write the actual letter. I also am having her try to think of words that begin with that letter and really emphasize the T sound. She did catch on that Tuck(Wonder Pets character) sounds like Trema(me). She got really excited that she knew that was right! 

I can't forget the Youtube Letter T song!

Halloween(cont.)...

I am still printing off the Halloween tracing worksheets. She is working her way through those on and off this week.

We also have the pattern and mix-match pages. All of these printables can be found online, mostly for free. Be sure to follow my Pinterest board all about: Preschool Activities and Resources!

I have found so many wonderful, fun, cheap and always educational ideas.

Here is one of the great ones I found over at Planning Playtime:

Little E hasn't done this one yet, but it is in her folder!

This week seems like we didn't get much done...or at least nothing new. We seem to be working over things a little longer. I want her to really "get" it(whatever that is) before we move ahead. I don't want her to feel rushed or have her trying to learn too much at once. And also, I'm trying to keep it fun and stick to the theme.

I hope y'all have had an awesome and productive week. Blessing for a great weekend!

Keep checking back to see what we've been up to! 

Are you ready for Halloween? or just over it and ready for Halloween to be over?

I'm sort of in the middle. I love the kids excitement but it's really just a Hallmark holiday around here.

Costumes, cookies, candy and done!

See ya next week!

Easy Fall Craft~ Making Trees...Homeschool Week #2

Do you need a quick, easy and cheap Fall/Autumn craft to do with your toddler or preschool aged child?

This craft can be done with minimal supervision and not a huge mess.

You will need:

A printable tree trunk(Printable Tree Trunk)Free!

Construction paper(shredded or torn)

red, yellow, orange, brown...

and a glue stick!

That's It!!

This whole project cost seriously, like $2.00

Glue sticks are $1.00/2 pack

and the construction paper was $1.00 for like 200 sheets

How easy is this?? Right?

Here is a link: Autumn Tree Craft

By the way, I printed off like 4 of the trunk sheets and my little has been making these for days!

Each one turns out different...She made one with all red leaves.

At first, being the OCD that I am, I tried to arrange and show her how to place them at the tips of the branches and then work her way around or in toward the trunk.

Well, Yea, she wasn't having that! She just wanted to haphazardly glue them anywhere!

And, guess what?

It turned out GREAT! I loved it! She loved it, and was so proud of her little Fall Tree!

We went over each color and why they fall off the trees.

"The trees deed(Dead*), Mom?"

"Why"?

She really was fascinated with learning about why they go from green(and stay on) to changing colors and fall off.

I've honestly been sort of slacking this week with the homeschooling. 

I've been out of sorts and she has been restless and fussy.

We've read a ton of books about school and whatever else she finds, we've tried to work on the letter A. I found some cute Autumn themed worksheets about Apples, Acorns, etc. She wasn't really into those too much. But I have discovered she loves the "Letter finds". Basically, it is a word find sheet, only with letters mixed up and each sheet wants you to find a particular letter.

Those are great and they have capital and lowercase.

(I'll have to find a pic of her A sheet)

I'm sure I will have a ton more things about Fall/Autumn and the crisp season coming.

I've got a ton of material yet to do on this.

I hope you enjoy this fun littel craft as much as we have.

Also, check out these great finds:

Fall Patterns Worksheet

Fun Fall Activities For Kids

In case you missed our intro to homeschool/preschool and week one,

Check us out here:

Preschool~ week #1

Happy Learning!

Momma Loves PBS Kids!

Are you tired of those annoying "kid" shows?

Ya know, the ones that are broadcast to entertain our youngsters. The ones that teach them nothing(good) and come with those catchy little intro theme songs that have your kids...and you hooked from the first 15 seconds.

Sure they are animated, loud, fast paced to keep kids watching, but are they learning anything from them. 

I mean other than, 

5 ways to annoy your sisters,

how to make a huge mess in the kitchen or any other place it isn't wanted,

How about the teasing, bullying, laughs at other's expense.

Or even down right gross, disgusting and quite disturbing(Sponge Bob comes to mind!).

 I've seen it all on "kids" shows. As, I'm sure most of us Mommas have.

It gets old quickly and very discouraging. We just want good, clean shows that will actual teach our littles and take some of the anxiety off of us to not have to constantly screen and re-screen every 30 minute program they watch.

I know I am a big stickler on what my kids watch. We have a list of "banned shows" in my house!

It's a real thing people!

 I'm not ashamed to admit, I need a break! I need 30 minutes of uninterrupted... Me time!

I need a HOT coffee that hasn't been reheated 4 times!

So, Yes, I use the TV as a babysitter!

*Gasp*

I'm waiting on the knock from CPS now......

*crickets chirping*

But, I do want my little to actually be learning something while being entertained!

I can honestly say that I have only positive things to say about PBS Kids! Any and all things about them are exactly what I am looking for.

They have soooo much to offer.

Here is a list of my Top 5 PBS KIDS "momma approved" TV programs!

1.Daniel Tiger Neighborhood~ love he teaches manners, caring for others, friendship and story time

2.Super Why~ story time and letter/word recognition, find the missing letter, etc

3.Word World~ So cute that each character is actually build/shaped out of the letters to spell it.(super cool)

4. Wild Kratts~ teaches about animals and nature, great adventures

5. Curious George~ I have to add George. He's super cute and I love the scientist/Doctor parts. They are very good at teaching about making things, baking and using your imagination.

PBS has so many ways to enjoy. Today anyone can use and share. They have TV shows, web games, apps, and even free PBS printables 

It is a great tool to keep kids learning and engaged in a fun, safe way!

I hope others will enjoy and help keep this oh so wonderful program alive for many more years to come!

Happy Teaching and Learning!

MY Preschool/Homeschool 101 (WIP) Learning together

Have you ever thought about Homeschooling?

Did you entertain the idea long before your little one was even old enough?

I have considered the idea for quite awhile. I have 3 daughters. They are quite spread out in age. 

19 years, 14 years and my littlest will be 4 next week!

Wow! 4 years old...NEXT WEEK!

I've been a stay at home momma and have always tried to do the basics, as most parents do. A,B,Cs..1,2,3s, write their name, know the colors and shapes, etc but I always feared they would be behind every other 5/6year old starting out in Kindergarten.

Can she count as high as Susie?

Does she read as well as Hailey?

Sure, I'll get daily or weekly reports from teachers and hopefully will be notified of any concerns throughout but, I'm not there to monitor their every lesson progress. Do we really know what they are being taught??? Or how they average out. I know here in Ohio there are crazy tests and requirements. Dates and data. Black and white score sheets to tell you and your government just how your child is fairing in the oh so wonderful public school systems.

I mean everything is based off of these scores. Teachers salaries, grant money, school supplies, etc.

Every day, every year this world gets crazier...scarier!

I honestly worry about whether my child will be taught based off of how much money and help her school receives! How sad is that?

And so many more concerns...

peer pressure, exposure, bullying..

Not that they live under a rock or won't have to live in the "real world" but I would like a good chance to explain and really teach them...My way? I don't know, just maybe give them a fighting chance before we throw them to the wolves!

I'm am an admitted control freak so maybe this is a somewhat selfish choice(I know I will hear it anyway). I do plan on educating myself before I jump in with both feet, but while I do still have almost 2 years(before Kindergarten) to figure this out; I am dipping my foot in the puddle to see how we do.

So, here is my pre-journey...

I am trying to find, research, save, pin, print and read anything and everything I can to get a good idea of what will be required of me, as a preschool/homeschool teacher!

There are so many wonderful resources out there today. This is one of the great uses of the internet!

Before, I jump into that, here is my super enthusiastic three year old, ready to learn!

Isn't she the cutest?

And she already has her own desk!!

My wonderful Mamaw has given us an antique desk. It is in wonderful condition!

I'm talking Laura Ingalls looking(ink well holder included) and it is amazing! She loves it!

Recourses:

I am trying to get started with a few free and basic printables and there are TONS on the web!

You can find whole lesson plans, themed plans(Christmas, Fall, Animals, etc), even personaliz-able worksheets to practice writing their name.

I'm telling you the free resources are endless!

Here are a few of my favorites that I have found.

From Pinterest:

Mommy Is My Teacher

Kingdom First Homeschool(Christian based)

Preschool Mom (great flash cards)

I also love these:

The Relaxed Homeschool

The Measured Mom

So, here we go on our homeschool journey.

I hope we can learn and thrive together. I will likely try to do a weekly update and continue to share any new resources that I find. 

Please!!!

Share any and all that you know of or come across. Mommas need all the help we can get!

I hope we can support and encourage each other!

Keep the coffee hot and the minds open!

This is my Work In Progress...Homeschooling

Happy Wednesday